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Company sets example on donating blood

Date Posted: 2005-04-23

Officials at Japan Red Cross say that their biggest worry always is not to have enough blood supplies for emergencies.

So, one Kadena Town construction company decided to do something about it. 17 years ago all of Daikou Kensetsu Co. workers decided to start a new tradition, and this year all of its 7,000 workers, including the company president Tatsuhide Miyazato participated.

The company workers also donate their time and effort to campaigning for others to donate blood. The company even has an official motto; “Everyone can rescue people, and the easiest way to do so is to donate blood!”

Daikou Kensetsu Co. workers donate blood en masse twice a year, in April and in October. The company management sees the regular blood donations as an extra health assurance for its employees.

“To donate blood you must be healthy, so donating blood makes you aware of your general heath,” Miyazato says.

Luckily for Japan Red Cross, there are also other companies that encourage their workers to donate blood. “Ajijiman,” a company that operates a chain of restaurants helps to organize blood drives around their locations. “The largest number of people we have managed to come to one location in one of our blood drives was 400,” Ajijiman President Seikichi Ireimon said. “There are many ways to engage in social work, but blood donation takes only a few minutes, is very easy and directly helps people,” Ireimon added.

Japan Red Cross officials in Okinawa say that currently they have the largest need for O-type blood as their stock stands only at 55 percent of the capacity.